Adopt in Pairs

While adopting one cat may be fun, nobody can deny that there are benefits to adopting pairs of cats. First of all, they may have an easier time adjusting to a new home environment. Having one’s best buddy or a family member to lean on can be a huge comfort when confronting new situations. Best of all, once they’ve made themselves at home they’ll have a built-in playmate!

A lonely kitty is a sad kitty, and there’s nothing better to keep a cat occupied than having another cat to romp with or to clean those hard-to-reach patches of fur (have you every tried to lick the top of your head?). Pairs of cats can also provide their humans with more than double the entertainment of one cat alone.

At Feline Rescue, there are many pairs of cats who have either bonded during their time with us or arrived as a pair. We would like to do everything possible to keep these pairs together, respecting family ties or even just the strong bond between best buddies or playmates.

Why We Place Kittens in Pairs

Kittens need interaction with other kittens for healthy social development.

A kitten learns a lot in the first several months of life from its mother and littermates. Separating a kitten from its mother is often a necessity for adoption purposes, but taking it away from its littermates and isolating it can delay the kitten’s development emotionally, socially, and sometimes physically. Kittens who are able to remain with one of their littermates or a similarly-aged companion tend to be healthier and happier, and in the long run, better socialized pets than those who are isolated from others of their kind at an early age.

Even loving, caring, humans are not adequate substitutes for kitten companionship.

Even if a person is fortunate enough to be home quite a bit, the amount of attention a lone kitten will demand is likely to occupy more time than the person has available. A pair of kittens will definitely still want to interact with people, but can keep each other occupied. Most cats, regardless of their age, are highly sociable and are truly happier living with other cat companions. This in turn makes them better pets.

Kittens are curious and crave constant stimulation.

Out of boredom, a single kitten will often entertain itself by chewing plants, climbing drapes and furniture, unrolling toilet paper, exploring electrical cords and sockets, etc. Kittens who live with other kittens may sometimes do these things as well, but if they have another kitten to tumble around and play with it is less likely they’ll need to entertain themselves with behaviors like these, which can be destructive and dangerous.

Kittens bite and wrestle with one another–this behavior is normal.

You can’t prevent a kitten from doing what comes naturally, any more than you can force a two-year-old toddler to sit still. Though it’s not acceptable for a kitten to bite and wrestle with its human companions, in the absence of having a littermate or companion its own age to play with, this is precisely what a single kitten will want to do. Even if you are willing to allow (and can tolerate) this behavior from your kitten, by the time the kitten matures, you will end up with an adult cat who has developed very bad habits (i.e. biting and scratching as “play”).

Kittens are very active at night.

A single kitten is likely to keep people awake at night with constant jumping, pouncing and other “hunting” behavior. With a companion to play with at night, this behavior is minimized because they will have each other to chase and play games with until they too fall asleep.

A single kitten is not a good companion for an older cat.

Kittens have boundless energy. They want to play and run constantly which typically overwhelms and irritates an older cat. Likewise, a kitten is apt to be frustrated that its companion doesn’t have its same level of energy. At the very least, this can lead to two very unhappy cats. At worst, behavior problems such as litterbox avoidance or destructive scratching can occur as one or both cats act out their frustrations on their surroundings. Its not likely that the two will have a close, bonded relationship, even after the kitten matures, since their experiences with one another from the beginning of the relationship are likely to be negative. An older kitty is better matched with a cat closer to its own age and temperament.